Solution S-XPS 1645/1647 Throttling Issues

sorry, 19x. (had to confirm.) i was looking at someone else's screencaps (from a core-i7 rig) for comparison to make sure i was matching the right fields. my bad -- was in a rush before work. anyway, i played mass effect 2 for about an hour and it got up to 76c, but no throttling. still kinda worried about heat dissapation, though -- the screen blocks the vents, as noted by other folks. well, i'll try to run it through a gauntlet of games tomorrow.

 

So I cannot seem to find anyone with the RGBLED that has tested the system. Is there any throttling with those who have the RGBLED screen?

 

me

 

Yes, but you still have the 90w adapter, which has been verified to be insufficient from multiple people. We need a test with a 130w.

 

W/ the 130 Watt my XPS 1645 w/RGB throttled. Plus the screen flickered, and the backlight bleed on the right and left was pretty bad. I since returned it and now going with Asus G73 W/ 5870.

 

It looks like my 1647 with A04 doesn't throttle any more while on battery power.
I am still waiting to get my 130W adapter though...

 

Hey guys what is the model number for the 130w slim adapter?

 

It is the PA-4E adapter, but it is hard to search on dells website. I think its under Dell Part #: 330-1830.

 

Part No. JU012

 

Thanks guys, Initially I tried PA-4E but they couldn't find it. I'll try both 330-1830 and JU012. Thanks!

 

Attn Dell-Bill_B, I know that this may be the last thing you want to here at this stage, but.....

I Just got of the phone from Dell Customer Care Australia, because for the last 6 days my laptop has been "built" but not shipped (and I was only on hold for 1 hour and 9 minutes, is that a record?).

But anyway they claim they have NO knowledge about the 1645 throttling / 130w power supply issue, and that I can order another power supply ( at my cost of course ), but not a 130w.

Do you have any knowledge of who I can call in Australia about this...?

 

Provide them with this link for easy reference .

 

meh, DELL wants the 90w adapter back. 1 to 1 exchange tomorrow -_-

Anyone here gets to keep their 90w adapter? I don't fancy lugging a huge black cube around

 

when I mentioned that this forum existed, and that someone from dell was helping, she basically told me I was wrong...

I would like to organize this before I get the laptop, but if I have to wait, so be it...

 

Show them that link. If you are talking to cust care and sales about this issue. They know nothing about it. Contact Tech support as you get the system.

 

Same thing in Greece/Bulgaria. They have never heard of this issue, even though there is official statement in Dell2Direct. They tried to bull me, that the problem is only with the US electricity and only US customers needed the replacement. OMG!

Nikolay

 

I got to keep my 90W adapter

 

A04 for 1647 web posted on 2/26. Are 1647 owners on this thread still seeing throttling?

All I can say about getting denied the AC adapter in regions outside the US is to keep trying, ask to speak to a manager, point them to the blog post on our corporate blog, and contact email support in your region. Once you have a case number from the rep, and an email response denying the adapter shipment, use the "Unresolved Issues" link, and just report the problem there.

EDIT:

I went back and read the posts since 2/26. I was out of town and am playing catchup today. So, basically, I am getting you need a 130W adapter+A04 to overcome throttling. Engineers are sticking to their point that 90W is enough, and I am telling them users are sticking to their point that it's not, but as I said earlier, it's a moot point. There is messaging in place in all regions to replace 90W with 130W to address heat and throttling complaints. However, it's obvious that not all regions are getting/reading/following the message, so just use my method above to get your 130W adapters.

 

My 1645 has exceeded 30 days return period (naive to think that Dell would solve all problems promptly and apologetically). Anyone knows how I can get full refund, either from Dell or credit card company please suggest.

Another problem arose, spent over two hours on incompetent support call and rude ending I am now completely fed up. I bought this for work so this has no financial impact for me, but I must live up to my principles.

Definitely time to consider standardizing to other OEMs. Dell seems to be having QA/internal communication problems and its support is getting worst. Everything I bought over the last months, Latitude E6400, Studio XPS, and latest Studio 15 received last week all have problems. I have bought close to 1000 computers and this is the worst experience ever.

Again please suggest how I can get this fully refunded so Dell doesn't benefit financially from my painful experience. Greatly appreciated!

 

Try filing a BBB complain. They are very helpful.

 

If you paid by Credit Card, I would start with them. I would look at what type of buyers protection you have as a benefit of using their card; either Mastercard or Visa. I would let Dell know that you are not satisfied and to make it right for you, or you will initiate a Chargeback, as the product is no bueno!

 

I would also like to add that you can also call the Attorney general in your state, and file a complaint there.

I am also watching this with great interest. I'm waiting to see if the 1645 will be added to this.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN0512189620100205

 

1647 i5-520m | A04 BIOS | RGBLED

Just rec'd the 130w (had two power cords, 1 with the 180 degree plug, the other straight) and did some tests:

prime95 + furmark (ThrottleStop v1.94 disabled, more data), Full RGBLED Brighness

No Throttling anymore with those two apps (Multi just a tad under 19 in TS, CPU-Z shows Multi x18 - x20).

BIOS does show 130w.

Going to monitor the heat near the bottom left of the screen, that is of some concern to me due to XPS 16 design.

 

1645.

130 Watt PSU.

A.07 Bios.

RGB.

Yup, Still Throttles.

 

Turbe: The default multiplier for an i5-520M is 18 so anything beyond that is turbo boost which is great to see when fully loaded. Maximum turbo boost when fully loaded is a 20X multiplier but it's usually the Intel CPU that will prevent that when it detects too much load. It's typical for the multiplier to continuously cycle between 18 and 20 based on load and CPU power consumption.

danp224: Your results aren't nearly so great to see. Not only is your Quad running at less than half the speed of Turbe's Dual Core, it's also suffering from some clock modulation which slows it down even further. Dell does not intend to release a bios which lets a user run Prime95 + Furmark at full speed on their mobile Quad Core so about the only choice is to send it back and tell them they can have it.

Whoever originally decided that a 90 watt adapter was good enough should get this:



Even a 130 watt adapter is marginal since it is still being throttled back to a lot less than the 130 watt DC rating on the label.

 

That explains my observation then, it was doing 18-20, I left for 15 minutes, when I came back it was at a rock steady 18. In fact, not even running furmark (or anything else) could get it to change, always 18. When I stopped the prime95 workers and restarted them, it went back to 18-20...

Seem like the 1647 with A04 and the 130w is running properly now (even with the RGBLED).

Now, if they had only had a different screen hinge design that didn't basically block the back side (and exhaust)..

 

I have a Kill A Watt, I guess I should check it.

 

Quick question -- how do I know if Turbo boost is enabled on my 1647? I see the driver in the Device Manager (Intel Turbo Boost) -- is that all there is to it?

 

Kill A Watt shows 114-118 watts with prime95 + furmark, RGBLED @ Full Brightness.

It's around around 75 watts with only prime95, RGBLED @ Full Brightness (bringing brightness @ 30-40%, it shows around 67watts, brightness all the way down, 65 watts, Brightness @ 75% it shows around 71 watts).

EDIT: With display off (prime95 running), it shows 56 watts.

IMO, it's clear (and has been apparently for some time) the 90w is not enough - there just isn't any headroom. The 130w should have been standard on the 1647s and they should ship 130w to existing owners for free (not requiring the 90w to be returned).

 

You should be set

 

You can also download this turbo boost gadget from Intel and run it. Not very informative but it will show if it's boosting while you are running other programs on your PC.
http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&DwnldID=18353

 

Maybe, in the case of the 1647, it's not being throttled? Maybe the hardware doesn't need the full 130W? Just asking. Not arguing.

 

fyi

In regards to those receiving a 130w adapter and are being asked to return the 90w..

I asked (complained? brought to their attention etc) about this (since I too was instructed to return the 90w in the box the 130w came in)....

Here is the reply I recieved:

I am keeping the 90 watt adapter and of course the 130w which is what I'll be using the most.

Note: I requested mine by emailing support so I have the conversation well documented.

In my case, Dell has handled the adapter issue very well. I was originally told 3-5 days to receive the 130w, Dell actually did Fed Ex it overnight (morning delivery).

I would also like to thank Bill B. here on the Forum...

 

Thanks Turbe, glad it worked for you.
I wish they could all get on the same page with this over at Dell. I'm going to sit back and wait until they do as I have no time, (mostly no patience) with dealing with the inconsistencies at tech support.

 

Where can we get the 130w other than asking Dell to send it to us? I didn't find it on any website, not even Dell.

Also what's the 130w part number? Just for my easy reference when I'm looking for one out there.

I purchased my 1645 from Dell on one country and I'm now living in another country which doesn't have an official Dell. So I don't think they are willing to send me a 130w with a different address than my original purchase address.

 

Part number is PA-4E.

 

The part number is JU012 and it is a Dell PA-4E PA4E 130 Watt AC Adapter.

For the cord, they shipped me two types, 0K2490 (straight plug) and 0FX429 (180° plug) - may be K2490 and FX429.

 

130W slim is PA-4E
130W brick is PA-13

 

Thanks guys, those numbers will be a big help. Any trusted online store you guys know where we could get one?

Edit: One that can ship internationally.

 

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Power/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&cs=19&sku=330-1830

Is this the right adapter?

 

Sure? Look at GPU-Z. GPU throttling is still there. The thermal design of 1647 is not good enough for powerful GPUs.

 

I think all these part numbers are referring to the same 130w adapter we are getting for our 1645?

Part numbers: 330-1829, 330-1830, D232H, PA-4E, X408G

 

I have GPU-Z running the entire time today (doing all day stress test).. what do you want me to specifically check in GPU-Z? Perhaps it's about the 84C temp limit.

Owners with with same config except 6GB/8GB actually do better on some GPU tests...

EDIT: Ok, I saw your test posted Here

Ouch, your Core/Mem on that test is awful (looking at your attached pics).

I set my Multi to 18, checked the other two and enabled TS. My temp was around 82C most of the time, but even at 83-84C (couple times) it didn't spike like that. No change in Core/Mem. I'm running 10.3 Preview Drivers.

EDIT 2: I have furmark (with prime95 to) running for 25 minutes so far, most of the time Temp is still at 82C, I have seen 6 spikes like you show for Core/Mem in GPU-Z (temp appears to hover at 84C for a little bit first) but there is between 50 -90 seconds between them. Nothing close to yours.

The 84C limit (or even lower on some models) doesn't appear to be Dell specific, it looks like over with the Asus', there is a Register that can be changed to a specific value to increase this limit on theirs. I thought I saw Unclewebb post something about adding this option to TS.

Maybe there is a similar bit that can be disabled for ours.

 

interesting! Maybe i5-520M vs 540M makes a difference?

I agree with you, 84C limit isn't Dell specific. But with my Dell 1647 it is too easy to exceed that limit.

And.. it is not a hot summer day today.

 

EDIT: I updated my post above, I see you posted before my last update.

yes, yours is just crazy.. what ATI Driver version are you running? I have the 10.3 Preview ones running from strags.com

I suppose the thermal compound was applied differently between ours.

The one thing I regret was the $60 upgrade to the 540m.. Not sure why I went cheap there, my system was only $1339 anyways, $60 should have been an easy decision.

 

For now, I'm using regular ATI Driver from dell-website. But thank you for the advice. I'll try 10.3 Preview and report my results later.

 

Running the normal drivers from dell and using a 90w adapter, I can verify your findings.

I get GPU throttling when running Prime95 and Furmark.

Highest temp 84C; if it was approaching 81-84C, it would then throttle down to 300mhz core and 499mhz memory to compensate.

CPU throttled a little bit (although I did have turbo boost disabled) it stayed for the most part at a rock solid 16x.

Sucks if you ask me. If they don't get this bs solved, I will be returning it. It is pretty damn sad, rock solid build quality, terrible research quality. Typical to see from Dell these days, sadly.

 

He has the 130w Adapter: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5945081#post5945081

He is getting severe GPU throttling, even with 130w.. I am not.... hopefully he will update to 10.3 Preview and see if that helps.

Other manufacturers have put a temp limit on their ATI GPU similar to ours.

The 90w is not adequate at all, you need to email Dell support and get the free 130w.

What CPU do you have, how much main memory and what BIOS version do you have?

Since it looks like the CPU Throttling issue is resolved (1647 with 130w and A04), perhaps an option to raise the 84C will be found.

 

I pmed Bill_B but didn't get anything back, unfortunately.

I must have gotten him confused with someone else; I thought he was on the 90w. Well even so, switching to 130w isn't going to lower the temps, is it?

Ci5-430m, Bios A04, 4GB.

 

No, it won't. Existing BIOS / 130W adapter / 10.3 Preview drivers have nothing to do with the GPU throttling. You experienced it yourself and even said so, it just happens that you had temps only reaching this here and there.

But everytime it hit it, it happened to you. Dell have also said this happen because of their own limit set to that. It happened on Studio 15 and previous m15x laptops also until they raised the limit via BIOS update.